Loom stop-motion.



No. 774,285. PATENTED NOV. 8, 1.904.

M. 0. STEERE.

LOOM STOP MOTION.

APPLIOATION FILED NOV. 12. 1902.

no MODEL.

WITNESSES //vv/v TOR WIQI| W V A TTOHNE Y UNITED STATES Patented November 8, 1904.

PATENT Orricn.

LOOM STOP-MOTION.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 774,285, dated November 8, 1904. Application filed November 12, 1902. Serial No. 131,057. (No model.)

To al whom it null/y concern:

Be it known that I, MERRILL O. STEERE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Pawtucket, in the county of Providence and State of Rhode Island, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Loom Stop-Motions,

,of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates particularly to narrow-ware looms; and the object is to provide improved means for stopping the loom upon accidental misplacement or wrongly-timed movement of the shuttles or of the shuttle actuating mechanism.

My improvement consists chiefly in so constructing the device that it shall be positive and quick of action and in so adapting it to the loom that it shall not occupy so much space as to curtail the shuttle-carrying capacity of the latter.

The following is a complete description of the invention and its mode of operation, illustrated by the accompanying drawings, in which Figure'l is a front view of a portion of a loom, showing my device attached; Fig. 2, a view looking toward the end of theloom, part sectional, on the line A A, Fig. 1; Fig. 3, a modification.

My invention consists, briefly, in mechanism to he acted upon by the shuttle rack-bar or other shuttle-actuating device whenever the latter is misplaced or its movement wrongly timed in relation to the movement of the lay to stop the loom.

Referring to the drawings, (t represents one of the loom end frames, bthe breast-beam eX- tending therefrom, and 0 the reciprocating lay or batten.

The stop-motion device is adapted to be supported adjacent the end frame of the loom, preferably at that end of the loom on which the driving mechanism is located. As

shown in Fig. 2, I provide an angular bracket (Z, adapted to be secured to the breast-beam b and having projecting lugs to form bearings for the operating mechanism of the stopmotion. Sliding in slots in the two upwardextending lugs e and f is a horizontal rod or bar adapted to be moved by the shuttle rack-bar to release the stopping devices of the loom. One end of the rod 9 is beveled on the under side and engages a similarly-beveled end of the vertical rod j. The rod g is held in normal position by the spring iawhich, acting between the lug e and the collar secured to the rod 9, presses it toward the rack- .bar 0, the said collar also acting to limit the movement of therod 9 under the action of the spring. The rod is adapted to slide in the bearings/r and Z at the front of the frame ti and is formed with a detent m at its lower extremity to engage the shifter-bar a. A helical spring j, supported on" the bearing Z and acting on the collar 7' forces the rod upward, maintaining the detent m in position for engagement with the shifter-bar n. The detent m is preferably formed, as shown in Fig. 2, by bending the endof the rod j at a right angle to its body portion and is adapted to engage a catch 0 in the under side of the shifter-bar a. connected with the power-controlling mechanism and by its longitudinal movement acts to stop the loom. As illustrated in the drawings, a belt-shipper p of usual structure is provided. to shift the driving-belt g from the loose to the tight pulley to start the loom and vice versa to stop it. The shipper p is moved through the lever r, suitably connected therewith and operated manually through a handrod 5, connected to the upper end of the lever r and running the length of the loom parallel to the breast-beam. The shifter-bar 72 engages the lever r to shift the belt q when automatic stopping is required. Sliding in the brackets t and a, the bar is pressed outward to engage the lever 1" by a helical spring 2;, bearing on the bracket it and acting on a collarm on the bar. A forked end y (notshown in Fig. 2) is provided on the lever a to straddle the lever r, insuring a positive engagement between the two. It will be noted that the lever r is movable independently of the shifter-bar to stop the loom by hand without releasing said bar. The bars 9, j, and n are held in their respective bearings by the pins 2 z, &c., which take the side thrust of the bars.

To release the detent-rod and allow the shifter-bar to act, 1 have devised the follow- The latter is operatively ing novel means: The rack-bar c is adapted to engage the end of the release-rod 9 if accident mis'places it or wrongly times its movement in relation to the movement of the lay. Normally during part of the movement of the lay the bar g passes through one or the other of two openings 0 0 extending through the rack-bar. As Well known to those versed in the art, the longitudinal reciprocation of the rack-bar takes place with the lay at or near its farthest backward position, and I adapt the length of the rod g to provide for the rackbar clearing its end during said movement.

The operation of the device is as follows: To start the loom, the belt is shifted from the loose to the tight pulley through the lever r by means of the hand-rod s. The movement of the lever r slides the shifter-bar '72, compressing its spring o until the catch in its under side registers with the detent on the rod 5/. The latter is forced upward by the spring 7" and engages the catch in the shifter-bar to retain the latter in the position indicated in Fig. 1. The rack-bar c traverses back and forth to throw the shuttles, passing transversely of the rod 9 beyond its extremity. At the completion of each stroke one or the other of the openings 0 is opposite the end of the bar g,and the latter is protruded through E the opening during the finish of the forward stroke of the lay. If now any accident befalls a shuttle, such as jamming in its blocks or being otherwise held from reciprocation at the proper time, the rack-bar, through its connection with the shuttles, is affected and fails to move. It will be evident that if the rack bar fails to accomplish the extent of its longitudinal movement while beyond the end of the bar g the latter will not register with and pass through its opening in said rack-bar. Hence upon the forward movement of the lay the solid portion of the rack-bar will engage the rod g and pressing it outward force down the detent-rod j through the engagement of the beveled sections, thereby releasing the shifter-bar 1. Through the tension of the spring 01 the latter will be forced outward to throw the lever r, and thereby shift the belt to stop the loom.

In most devices for the purpose herein de scribed it has been the practice to employ a dummy shuttle, so called, for acting upon the stopping mechanism. This arrangement consisted of the body portion of the shuttle traveling in the blocks at one end of the lay and adapted on wrongly-timed movement to engage the releasing mechanism. It will be evident, however, that such an arrangement curtails the product of the loom, since the dummy displaces one operative shuttle. In my device the full complement of shuttles may be used in the loom.

Means have been before devised to perform the automatic stopping so disposed and arranged as not to require the dummy shuttle,

but which, nevertheless, by its bulk and because of the movement of projecting members consumed space which might otherwise l be available for weaving. In my device the 1 mechanism is so compacted and so disposed as to require a minimum amount of space and to be out of the way of the operator, while I, accessible for oiling or repair.

\Vhile I have described my device in combination with the rack-bar of a loom, it is evident that the mechanism might be operated by any other appropriately-going member and also that modifications might be made in the form and arrangement of its parts i without departing from the scope of this in- 1 vention. For example, Fig. 3 shows a form of the device in which the vertical rod 7' bears upon the top of the shifter-bar a, thereby requiring no hook to be formed at its lower extremity to constitute the detent. In such case the vertical rod 7' is formed with an opening near the top in line with the hori- Zontal rod 9. The top edge of the opening is rounded to correspond with the bevel at the end of rod g, so that when the latter is shifted to press against the rod j rod 1' is raised, disengaging its lower extremity from the detent-rod n.

\ herefore, without limiting myself to the l precise construction and arrangement shown and described, I claim as my invention 1. The combination with the lay, shuttles i and shuttle-actuating rack-bar of a loom, of a stop-motion comprising a sliding shifter-bar actuated to govern the power-controlling mechanism, a detent to maintain the shifterbar inoperative, and a release-rod so related l to the rack-bar as to be normally protruded l through openings in the latter on the forward l movement of the lay, but engaged thereby on a wrongly-timed movement to release the detent to stop the loom.

2. The combination in a stop-motion for l looms, of a spring-pressed shifter-bar, a detent-rod adapted to engage a catch in the shifter-bar and having a beveled extremity, and a release-rod formed with a beveled end to engage that of the detent-rod and adapted to be moved by a going member of the loom to release the detent-rod substantially as shown and described.

3. The combination in a stop-motion for looms, of a sliding shifter-bar, adapted to operate the power-controlling mechanism, means to slide the bar, a detent-rod adapted to engage the shifter-bar to maintain it inoperative, and a release member engaging the detent-rod and so related to a going member of the loom as to normally clear the latter but engaged thereby on an ill-timed movement to stop the loom.

4:. The combination in a stop-motion for looms with the breast-beam, lay, shuttles and rack-bar, of a bracket adapted to be fastened to the breast-beam and having projecting lugs with bearings, a horizontal rod adapted to slide in said bearings, and havinga beveled extremity,a collar on the rod, a spring acting between said collar and one of the bearings of the bracket to maintain the rod in position to be protruded through openings in the rack-bar on the forward movement of the lay. a vertical detent-rod sliding in bearings at the front of the bracket formed with a beveled upper extremity to engage that of the horizontal rod and having a bent lower extremity, a collar on said rod, a spring acting between the collar and one of the bearings of the bracket to press the rod upward, a horizontal shifter-rod sliding in bearings at the front of the loom to govern the powercontrolling mechanism and having a catch to be engaged by the bent portion of the detentrod, a collar on said rod and a spring acting between the collar and one of the bearings to slide the rod, all substantially as and for the purpose described.

5. The combination, in a stop-motion for looms, of the lay, shuttles, and perforated shuttle-actuating bar, of a sliding shifter-bar operatively connected to the power-controlling mechanism, a detent to maintain the shifter-bar inoperative, and a rod in the line of movement of the shuttle-actuating bar, operating through the detent on the shifterbar to control the stopping.

6. The combination of the lay, shuttles, and perforated shuttle-actuating bar, of a bevel-ended rod in the line of movement of the shuttle-actuating bar, a bevel-ended rod suitably supported at an angle to the first rod, and a shifter-bar controlled by the latter.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

MERRILL o. STEERE.

Witnesses:

EZRA D. GRovEs, EDWIN C. SMITH. 

